A friend of mine came racing into the classroom, "Gary Hart
and his army crashed in an airplane last night! I heard in on the radio
on the way to school!"

News of this traveled around our Middle School quickly. Everyone was
talking about it. We wondered all day long. Who else was on the plane?
Was anybody killed? etc.

Today, news updates are frequent and easy to find. We turn on the TV
or go to the Internet and we've got the latest news in seconds. In 1975,
we had to wait patiently for the 6 O'Clock News. All we knew was that a
professional wrestler had been killed in an early morning plane crash in
Tampa Bay.

At 6 pm, we all heard the news for the first time. Robert Shoenberger
(better known to the wrestling world as Bobby Shane) had died at the age
of 29. He was still strapped in his rear seat in the cockpit when the
plane was retrieved from the water. Tampa police said that there were no
signs of an "incapacitating injury" he may have received when
the plane crashed and that he apparently had drowned before he could
free himself.

Wrestler/Manager Gary Hart, Dennis McCord (aka 'Iron Mike"
McCord, later to be known as Austin Idol) and Buddy Colt had all
sustained injuries described in reprint of the St. Petersburg Times
article from Feb. 21, 1975 (see below).

It was a sad day for many wrestling fans around the world as Shane
was a very popular, and hated heel. Fans in those days had intense
hatred for the "bad guys". I recently listened to an interview
with Jack Brisco which was taped earlier this year (2001) where he made
reference to this.

Bobby Shane had wrestled his last match in Miami, FL just prior to
boarding the ill-fated plane to Tampa. At the next Miami show, when they
announced that Bobby Shane had died, the audience actually cheered.
Brisco said it has troubled him for many years that people actually
cheered about somebody dying.

Bobby Shane's life was cut short at the young age of just 29. He gave
his all to the world of professional wrestling. He was one of the
greatest wrestling stars of the 1970's and will not soon be forgotten.

Below is a reprint of the article that was published by The St.
Petersburg Times about the tragic plane crash that claimed the life of
Bobby Shane.

From
the St. Petersburg Times, Feb. 21, 1975. Article by St. Petersburg
Times Staff Writer, Bill Cryer

Pro Wrestler Killed, Three More Injured in Plane Crash

The body of professional wrestler Bobby Shane, 29 was recovered from
the wreckage of a small airplane that crashed early Thursday morning in
Tampa Bay.

Wrestling commentator Gordon Solie said Shane's foot was pinned in
the wreckage. Three other wrestlers, including Buddy Colt, holder of the
Title North American Champion, were able to swim to shore after the
pre-dawn crash.

Shane's real name is Robert Shoenberger. He lived in St. Louis, MO.

Recovering from injuries received in the crash are Colt, 39, who
received a shattered foot, possible back injuries and cuts and bruises
in the accident. Dennis McCord, 27 who broke both ankles in the crash
and Gary Williams (aka Playboy Gary Hart), 32, who suffered severe
facial cuts, and a fractured wrist.

Solie said that Colt, whose real name is Ronald Reed, was the pilot
of the aircraft, a single-engine Cessna 182. He said the wrestlers had
taken off late Wednesday night from Opalaka Airport after they had
finished their matches in Miami.

The plane was to have landed at Tampa International, but Solie said
bad weather forced them to try Peter O. Knight Airport on Davis Island.

"He (Colt) was unfamiliar with the landing area and made one
pass but was too high to make a landing," Solie said. "He then
went into a bank to go around for another pass and the plane went into a
stall, which was compounded by headwinds, nosed over and went into the
bay," Solie said.

He said Colt "just exploded right out of his safety belt"
and escaped from the airplane as it sank in about 15 feet of water 300
yards from shore.

McCord squirmed out of a safety harness he said, and the two along
with Williams managed to swim to shore. Solie said Williams
crawled to a nearby house to summon help. When the rescuers arrived,
Solie said, the injured wrestlers were attempting to lower a small boat
into the bay to begin a search for their friend.

A Tampa General Hospital spokesman said all three men were in
satisfactory condition, but under heavy sedation Thursday afternoon.